Meeting the Challenge of Teaching Information Literacy

While the profession has generated many books on information literacy, none to date have validated exactly why it is so difficult to teach. In her new book, Reale posits that examining and reflecting on the reality of those factors is what will enable practitioners to meet the challenge of their important mandate. Using the same warm and conversational tone as in her previous works, she

• uses personal anecdotes to lay out the key reasons that teaching information literacy is so challenging, from the limited amount of time given to instructors and lack of collaboration with faculty to one’s own anxieties about the work;
• examines how these factors are related and where librarians fit in;
• validates readers’ struggles and frustrations through an honest discussion of the emotional labor of librarianship, including “imposter syndrome,” stress, and burnout;
• offers a variety of approaches, strategies, and topics of focus that will assist readers in their daily practice;
• looks at how a vibrant community of practice can foster positive change both personally and institutionally; and
• presents “Points to Ponder” at the end of each chapter that encourage readers to self-reflect and then transform personal insights into action.

Reale’s book is a valuable springboard for reflection that will help academic librarians understand the complexity of the challenges they face and then forge a path forward.